A Doll's House, Part 2 at Hampton Theatre Company

A Dolls House, Part 2, Lucas Hnaths smart, funny and utterly engrossing (New York Times) play revisiting the central characters of Henrik Ibsens 1879 original, will be the final production of the Hampton Theatre Companys 2021-2022 season, opening on May 26 at the Quogue Community Hall and running through June 12. When the door slammed in 1879 Norway in Henrik Ibsens revolutionary play, a young wife and mother left behind her family, freeing herself from the shackles of traditional societal constraints. Now, 15 years later, that same door opens to reveal Nora, a changed woman with an incredibly awkward favor to ask the people she abandoned. Lucas Hnath's bitingly funny sequel unfolds in a series of bristling standoffs revealing that behind every opinion there is a person, and a slamming door isn't just an end, but also the chance for a new beginning.A Newcity.com review of the Steppenwolf Theater production in Chicago answered a common question on many theatergoers' minds: First things first: No, you do not have to have seen or read Henrik Ibsens A Dolls House to understand or appreciate the theatrical mastery of A Dolls House, Part 2. In a review for DCTheatreScene.com, Jayne Blanchard wrote: The exuberant imagination of A Dolls House, Part 2 is smart on two levels. It is perceptive, funny and intelligent, but smarts like a slap in its portrayal of gender roles and the expectations of what it is to be a woman. The review also noted that Hnaths crisp, often laugh-out-loud dialogue contains modern language that makes deft, devastating connections between the past and present and how little has changed in the arena of womens rights. And even, in light of recent events, how we seem to be going backwards in our thinking of womens identities, ownership of their bodies, and narrowing definitions of motherhood and wifely roles.In his review for The New York Times, Ben Brantley wrote: This unexpectedly rich sequel reminds us that houses tremble and sometimes fall when doors slam, and that there are living people within, who may be wounded or lost.In a cast of four, the HTC production of A Dolls House, Part 2 features two HTC veterans, Rosemary Cline as Nora and Andrew Botsford as Torvald. Making her debut on the HTC stage in the role of Noras daughter Emmy is Molly Brennan, who was directed by Ms. Cline in productions at Westhampton Beach High School and was awarded one of the HTCs Peter Marbury scholarships in 2020. Newcomer Marianne Schmidt has the role of housekeeper and nanny Anne Marie. George Loizides (Private Lives, Native Gardens, Lost in Yonkers) directs. Set design is by Mr. Loizides; lighting design by Sebastian Paczynski; sound by Seamus Naughton; and costumes by Teresa Lebrun.A Dolls House, Part 2" will be performed from May 26 through June 12 on Thursdays and Fridays at 7, Saturdays at 8 and Sundays at 2:30. An additional matinee performance will be offered during the final weekend of the production, on Saturday, June 11, prior to the regular 8 p.m. performance that evening. Two bonus talkbacks with the cast will be offered, the first immediately following the June 3 Friday evening performance, and the second following the June 5 Sunday matinee. PLEASE NOTE: For the safety of all, ticket holders will be required to show a photo ID and proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test within 72 hours of the day of the performance they are attending. Face-covering masks will be required at all times while inside the theater. These protocols are subject to change. For more information and updates on safety protocols, visit hampton theatre.org. Tickets are $36, $31 for seniors, and $20 for students 25 and under. To purchase tickets, visit www.hamptontheatre.org. For information on Veteran or Native American discounts or to order tickets over the phone please call 631-653-8955.

Authors

• Lucas Hnath